Ray Caesar’s “Dangerous Inclination” – Opening Night

While Ray Caesar’s surreal Rococo-inspired works suggest an era that never was, many describe him as ahead of the times of digital art. In “A Dangerous Inclination,” his first exhibition with Corey Helford, Caesar took a personal note to reflect on forgotten difficult memories with his most non-figurative work to date. The exhibition boasts 30 exquisitely rendered digital paintings, numbered editions and one of a kind pieces, all elegant on the outside with hints of darkness within. This strange irony in Ray Caesar’s work is the artist’s way of revealing hidden emotions, which he sometimes mixes with clocks, irons, knives, and other motifs.

Unique to “A Dangerous Inclination,” some of these elements rise from the background to become the artwork’s subject. In his recent interview with Hi-Fructose (seen here), Ray Caesar further explains, “A dangerous inclination is about the difficulties of being able to manage disparate parts of one’s own personality and the dangerous inclination to let one part rule over the others.” The exhibition opening marked Caesar’s 53rd birthday, just days away, with an intricate clock cake designed by Caesar and a classical music ensemble. “A Dangerous Inclination” by Ray Caesar exhibits at Corey Helford gallery, from October 22 till November 12, 2011. – Caro